Getting Organized in the Google Era: How to Get Stuff Out of Your Head, Find It When You Need It, and Get It Done Right

Whether it's a faulty memory, a tendency to multitask, or difficulty managing our time, every one of us has limitations conspiring to keep us from being organized. But, as organizational guru and former Google CIO Douglas C. Merrill points out, it isn't our fault. Our brains simply aren't designed to deal with the pressures and competing demands on our attention in today's fast-paced, information-saturated, digital world. But it doesn't have to be this way.

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The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload

In The Organized Mind, Daniel J. Levitin, PhD, uses the latest brain science to demonstrate how those people excel - and how readers can use their methods to regain a sense of mastery over the way they organize their homes, workplaces, and time. With lively, entertaining chapters on everything from the kitchen junk drawer to health care to executive office workflow, Levitin reveals how new research into the cognitive neuroscience of attention and memory can be applied to the challenges of our daily lives.

The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

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Zen Habits: Handbook for Life

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Logic: A Very Short Introduction

Logic is often perceived as having little to do with the rest of philosophy, and even less to do with real life. In this lively and accessible introduction, Graham Priest shows how wrong this conception is. He explores the philosophical roots of the subject, explaining how modern formal logic deals with issues ranging from the existence of God and the reality of time to paradoxes of probability and decision theory. Along the way, the basics of formal logic are explained in simple, non-technical terms, showing that logic is a powerful and exciting part of modern philosophy.

Andrew H. says:"Very sloppy reasoning"

Publisher's Summary

Whether it's a faulty memory, a tendency to multitask, or difficulty managing our time, every one of us has limitations conspiring to keep us from being organized. But, as organizational guru and former Google CIO Douglas C. Merrill points out, it isn't our fault. Our brains simply aren't designed to deal with the pressures and competing demands on our attention in today's fast-paced, information-saturated, digital world.

What's more, he says, many of the ways in which our society is structured are outdated, imposing additional chaos that makes us feel stressed, scattered, and disorganized.

But it doesn't have to be this way. Luckily, we have a myriad of amazing new digital tools and technologies at our fingertips to help us manage the strains on our brains and on our lives; the trick is knowing when and how to use them. This is why Merrill, who helped spearhead Google's effort to "organize the world's information", offers a wealth of tips and strategies for how to use these new tools to become more organized, efficient, and successful than ever.

But if you're looking for traditional, rigid, one-size-fits-all strategies for organization, this isn't the book for you. Instead, Merrill draws on his intimate knowledge of how the brain works to help us develop fresh, innovative, and flexible systems of organization tailored to our individual goals, constraints, and lifestyles.

From how to harness the amazing power of search, to how to get the most out of cloud computing, to techniques for filtering through the enormous avalanche of information that assaults us at every turn, to tips for minimizing distractions and better integrating work and life, Getting Organized in the Google Era is chock-full of practical, invaluable, and often counterintuitive advice for anyone who wants to be more organized and productive - and less stressed - in our 21st-century world.

Just OK -- I expected more, being a big Google guy fan. Parts were interesting, but a little too much about his life with useful stuff sprinkled here and there. He does a decent job reading it himself though, in his weird Canada-via-the-Ozarks dialect.

Yes. The way the material is organised means you can skip to different areas of the book and still pick up useful concepts

What was one of the most memorable moments of Getting Organized in the Google Era?

That he was able to overcome dyslexia and teach himself practical methods for being organised and dealing with massive amounts of information.

Which character – as performed by Douglas Merrill – was your favorite?

The beauty is he is reading his own story and he is the character. A very likeable gentleman who likes having a bit of fun in his life rather than the stereotypical business person. He has an innovative way of using song titles whilst introducing new chapters.

What’s an idea from the book that you will remember?

Emailing important information to yourself. So the information is recorded electronically which takes it out of your head and it is then searchable.

Any additional comments?

Overall, a solid audiobook with useful information for readers - not boring. Sounds like an interesting guy and a great self achievement story in itself without the added bonus of practical time management in a technological world. Really enjoyed it and got a lot out of it which I am using practically today.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

The book was more about the personal history of the author than a set of tricks and techniques about getting organised in a digital age. I have read getting things done by David Allen in the past and I was hopping this book would be similar. Boy was I wrong.

What did you take away from Getting Organized in the Google Era that you can apply to your work?

to be honest not much... I am in IT and nothing he said was new or original to me.

I actually loved this book. Even though I teach people how to use software like MS Office and QuickBooks, I didn't realize how interesting and useful the internet could be to organization!! I used the internet often for research and fun; but since this book, I am getting much more use out of it AND becoming much more organized with my daily information.

I really LIKE that I can reach my information no matter where I am. Great Book!

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